BORGO PRESS BOOKS BY ALEXANDRE DUMAS
Anthony
The Barricade at Clichy; or, The Fall of Napoleon
Bathilda
Caligula
The Corsican Brothers (with Eugène Grangé & Xavier de Montépin)
The Count of Monte Cristo, Part One: The Betrayal of Edmond Dantès
The Count of Monte Cristo, Part Two: The Resurrection of Edmond Dantès
The Count of Monte Cristo, Part Three: The Rise of Monte Cristo
The Count of Monte Cristo, Part Four: The Revenge of Monte Cristo
A Fairy Tale (with Adolphe de Leuven and Léon Lhérie)
The Gold Thieves (with Countess Céleste de Chabrillan)
Kean
The Last of the Three Musketeers; or, The Prisoner of the Bastille (Musketeers #3)
Lorenzino
The Mohicans of Paris
Napoléon Bonaparte
Queen Margot
Richard Darlington (with Prosper Dinaux)
Sylvandire
The Three Musketeers (Musketeers #1)
The Three Musketeers—Twenty Years Later (Musketeers #2)
The Tower of Death (with Frédéric Gaillardet)
The Two Dianas (with Paul Meurice)
Urbain Grandier and the Devils of Loudon
The Venetian
The Whites and the Blues
The Widow’s Husband; and, Porthos in Search of an Outfit
Young Louix XIV
Related Dramas:
The Queen’s Necklace, by Pierre Decourcelle
The Seed of the Musketeers, by Paul de Kock & Guénée (Musketeers #5)
The San Felice, by Maurice Drack
The Son of Porthos the Musketeer, by Émile Blavet (Musketeers #4)
A Summer Night’s Dream, Adolphe de Leuven & Joseph-Bernard Rosier
The Widow’s Husband; and, Porthos in Search of an Outfit: Two Dumasian Comedies, edited by Frank J. Morlock
COPYRIGHT INFORMATION
Copyright © 2000, 2013 by Frank J. Morlock
Published by Wildside Press LLC
www.wildsidebooks.com
DEDICATION
To Conrad: yet another project that would never have seen the light of day without your support.
CAST OF CHARACTERS
Henry of Navarre
Charles IX
La Môle
Coconnas
Duke d’Alençon
La Hurière
Caboche
De Mouy
René
Maureval
Friguet
Jailor
The Governor
A Huguenot
A Judge
Catherine de Medici
Marguerite
Madame de Nevers
Madame de Sauve
The Nurse
Jolyette
Gilonne
Mica
ACT I, SCENE 1
A square in Paris. To the right, the hostel of La Hurière with rooms opening on the street level, and on the first floor. To the left, the hotel of Admiral Coligny with a balcony. In the center, the dwelling of Moncey. On each side of this dwelling a street facing the audience and losing itself in the distance.
LA HURIÈRE
(at his door, seeing Maureval who enters from the left)
Ah! Come here, Lord Maureval, come here.
MAUREVAL
I am here!
LA HURIÈRE
Do you know who is there opposite us?
MAUREVAL
At the Admiral’s home?
LA HURIÈRE
Yes, at the Admiral’s—King Charles IX.
MAUREVAL
What of it?
LA HURIÈRE
What’s he doing at the home of this anti-Christ?
MAUREVAL
By God! To give him the kiss of Judas. It is important that he suspect nothing. He is the God of those damned Huguenots and today he controls 10,000 swords, perhaps.
LA HURIÈRE
Then nothing is changed, despite this visit?
MAUREVAL
Nothing.
LA HURIÈRE
And is it still for tonight?
MAUREVAL
Without fail!
LA HURIÈRE
At what time?
MAUREVAL
No one knows yet; but a signal will be given us.
LA HURIÈRE
What will it be?
MAUREVAL
The tocsin will sound from Saint Germain.
LA HURIÈRE
The rallying sign?
MAUREVAL
The cross of Lorraine.
LA HURIÈRE
And the password?
MAUREVAL
Suise and Calais.
LA HURIÈRE
That’s good; we’ll prepare for the feast.
MAUREVAL
Quiet! Here’s a tourist who’s just come.
LA HURIÈRE
Pass this way.
MAUREVAL
Goodbye.
(La Hurière shows him through the house. Maureval can be seen leaving by a door which gives on another street. Coconnas enters on horseback, his eyes are fixed on a sign which represents a roast chicken and which bears the legend—To the Beautiful Tower.)
COCONNAS
By God! There’s an inn which knows how to advertise itself, and the host must be, on my word, an ingenious chap. Besides, it’s situated near the Louvre and that’s where I’m going.
LA MÔLE
(arriving on horseback by another street)
On my soul, that’s a pretty sign—then the hostel is near the Louvre; this will be my accommodation.